This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Spark plugs often include a housing having a copper core and center electrode disposed within. A ground electrode base extends from the housing and may include a ground electrode pad on its tip. A gap exists between the ground electrode pad, or ground electrode base and the center electrode. Spark plugs work by generating a high potential difference between the center electrode and the ground electrode pad or ground electrode base. When the potential difference gets high enough, a spark is formed which ignites a fuel-air mixture.
Standard spark plugs without precious metal on the ground electrode base or ground electrode pad may suffer from accelerated ground electrode erosion in today's advanced combustion environments. Improvements have been made such as adding precious metal pads in place of ground electrode pads on the ground electrode base to suppress wear. However, the longevity provided by this method is not accompanied by an ignitability improvement.